Supermarket group Tesco has said that following major price reductions in eleven of its stores along the border, the incentive for southern consumers to shop in the North would be removed.
The company said over 12,000 prices were being reduced by an average of 22% in the border stores from this morning to cut down on cross-border shopping and to protect jobs in the region.
Tesco said it remained fully committed to supporting Irish products and suppliers. It said it had retained all the familiar Irish products and brands and it also highlighted its €2 billion purchases of Irish food annually.
The company described its border reforms as a radical price shift. Tesco's CEO Tony Keohane said that when currency costs and travel and journey times are taken into account, many customers will find it cheaper to shop south of the border.
Mr Keohane said today's initiative will enable Tesco to compete in the long term with prices in the North.
Tesco also said it is cutting the price of milk and meat in all of its 118 stores nationall. These employs 12,500 people.
